Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1887-07-20
Martyrs.

There Is q vast difference between the
penalty that comes from wrong-doing and
the suffering which is o sacrifice for the sake
of principle The man who is in favor of
community of goods, and is put in the
pillory for stealing his neigEbor's chickens
is not g martyr to his opinions. He may
hold and teach his peculiar views from
youth to old age, and be wholly unmolested;
but the overt act Of appropriating the prop
erty of another is an oifense which society is
very prompt to punish. Not his cherished
opinions. but his open breach of the law
has brought him to grief.
Willful men who set aside ell re straint to
have their own way, and are left to suffer
the natural consequences of their obstinacy,
are very apt TO pose as martyrs, and claim
that they are punished for an honest adher-
ence to their own convictions. They will
insist vehemently upon the right of every
man to think for himself, and when their
thoughts take concrete shape, and the overt
action infringing upon the rights Of another
meets its proper penalty, will howl their
lament that man in 9 free country must
suffer for opinions sake.
We knew loud mouthed defender of the
statement that all the days of the week
were alike, who suffered, not because he
clung tenaciously to this view, but because
he was not at all tolerant ofthe views of the
great majority who disagreed with him.
! The lntter, believing in Sunday rest, had
passed q law forbiding any open disturbance
of the public quiet during the hours they
,o1I frhic hiHHiOo daft N
the law, made as much noise as possible on
the first day of the week, as his protest
against its sanctity. He was arrested and
punished, and thereafter issued pamphlet
setting forth his fellowship with those who,
in the d.time, were burned at the stake for
their religious opinions But he was not
punished for his opinions. He might have
been ever so true to them and still not dis
turb the peace of the village. There was
nothing in his opinions that required him
to pow field opposite the village church
! while tho majority OF the people were assem-
bed for worship. 1t would not have called
| for any sacrifice OF his convictions to have
| paid a,little respect 10 the cherished views
of others and TO have refrained from annoy
ing them while clinging to his own belief.
| 4 young man of considerable talent stud
| led for the ministry and was ordained as q
pastor over q Presbyterian Church. He
| soon began to develop great laxity of doc
trine, and finally came 10 deny the divinity
Of Christ aud the belief in future rewards
and punishments. He was cited to appear
before the Presbytery, but declined, saying
that he was entitled to his own opinions
and was in no way responsible for them to
an ecclesiastical court After repeated
warnings and citations he was deposed from
the ministry and debarred from the pulpits
OF that denomination. He and his followers
made the welkin ring with the charge that
he had suffered from religious persecution,
and accused the ecclesiastical court with
trying TO put fetters on q freeman's spiritu-
al life. The truth was that the church to
which he had solemnly vowed his allegi-
| ance simply held that while joined to that
body he must not repudiate its system of
theology Ordinary decency would have
reqired him to resign his pastorate and re-
tire from the organization whose doctrines
he so bitterly opposed before he publicly
proclaimed his views.
The friends DR.. McGlynn are weaving for
him the martyrs chapleJ because the Papal
church has dismissed him from her commu
MON. But no selfrespecting body of be-
livers would retain its connection with one
to submit to its discipline 1t makes no
difference in the argument whether the de-
posed priest is right or wrong in his pecu-
liar views. He was not at liberty to disre-
gard the call of his acknowledged superiors
on the plea that they wanted to deprive
him of his manhood's right TO his own free
thoughts. He should have answered the
citation in person, and submitted his case,
as he had pledged himself to do, to the
Judgment be had promised to respect; or
else seeded from the church, and thus pro-
claimed his right to be free from all ecclesi-
astical control.
Dr.. McGlynn was not excommunicated
because of his views on the land question,
nor even in consequence of his public utter
ances on that and kindred themes. But he
was expelled from the body to which he
had vowed his allegiance because he con-
tumaciously refused to appear before the
proper tribunal when duly cited and repeat
edly warned of the result of his obstinacy.
A man is entitled to his own opinions, but
he has no right to claim membership in an
organization while he refuses to submit to
its weil-known rules. TO expel MIN for
violating such rules is not TO persecute him
for his opinions, but to punish him for gross
disrespect TO statutes ne hes promised to
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